Photos courtesy of Renee Schaffer Photography
Kansans looking for custom-made furniture may not realize they may not need to leave the state to find what they want.
Zack Schaffer, owner of Schaffer Furniture in Jetmore, KS, builds and ships high-end, custom-made furniture across the U.S. and overseas, using the finest, most exotic and expensive woods from around the world, including South America and Africa.
He spends up to 60 hours creating each piece of furniture by hand using German woodworking tools and very little help.
Schaffer begins his day at 4 a.m. feeding and doctoring his steers before spending most of the day in the woodshop. What may be an exhausting schedule to some is ideal to Schaffer, who was raised by his father and grandfather to have a strong work ethic.
“When I turn on the radio on Monday mornings, everyone’s always like ‘oh, God, it’s Monday,’” Schaffer said. “For me, every day is Monday and I love it. I get to do what I want to do. I sit out here, listen to podcasts and build furniture for great folks.”
The part-time help he employs mostly assists with moving materials, making cutting boards or finishing the surface of the furniture. He prefers to do the shaping, designing and carving himself.
“I make everything myself,” he said. “I don’t really want full-time help. Mainly because I don’t have to deal with people. That’s the best and worst part of business.”
Lea Anna Seiler — former economic development director of Hodgeman County — has known Schaffer since he was in college with her son. Seiler said the county gave Schaffer his first loan and sent him to a furniture making boot camp because her organization saw potential in him and wanted to make sure he stayed in Jetmore.
Seiler described Schaffer as hardworking, talented, down-to-earth, driven, personable and a good guy to everyone who knows him.
“He was sort of our poster child for the community and exactly the kind of person we wanted to use those funds for,” Seiler said. “He’s a good role model for other young people in the community.”
Seiler nominated Schaffer for the Kansas Manufacturing Council’s annual Coolest Thing Made in Kansas contest, where Schaffer Furniture was a finalist in October 2022. Schaffer said he was grateful and extremely humbled by the nomination.
“I just wanted and thought it would be good for people to see his work that may not have seen it before,” Seiler said.
Schaffer opened Schaffer Furniture in 2012, but his interest in furniture making first began with woodworking classes in high school. In college at Fort Hays State University, he studied to be an orthodontist but realized his passions lied elsewhere when he saw a photo of a Swedish midcentury chair.
“Truth be told I saw a picture of the chair online,” Schaffer said. “And it was beautiful. That’s kind of what sent me down this rabbit hole.”
Schaffer has a special connection with custom making chairs to fit the shape of their owners.
“It’s something that’s unique, you know, to make to make a chair to fit the person,” Schaffer said. “There’s a lot of stuff that goes into it. It’s much more complicated and personal.”
Schaffer described his style of furniture as mid-century, organic and clean, and has recently delved into the art deco style.
Though he often has many orders to attend to, Schaffer said he still enjoys making furniture for fun, especially when inspired by a new wood. Recently, he received an African mahogany he’s been itching to make a desk out of.
Schaffer said his passion for exotic, beautiful woods and making furniture is heavily connected to his faith.
“The good Lord gave me a strong, good back to work on, so that’s what I do,” Schaffer said. “I get to work with some incredible woods, and that’s the most beautiful part — what the Lord made.”
Schaffer is currently working on a bed going to Wichita, three chairs going to North Carolina, Florida and California, and other items to ship across Iowa and Kansas.
Seiler said Schaffer made a desk for her a few years ago, and she considers it a work of art.
“Zack’s furniture speaks for itself,” Seiler said. “You don’t need to put it in a room with a lot of decor and things. Between the shape, the lines, the finishes, and the wood that it’s made out of, it is really the artwork itself.”
Schaffer said the furniture business allows him to leave a legacy, and he plans to teach his two sons about his business and the value of hard work.
“The reward in itself is people being excited to have [furniture] I made,” Schaffer said. “And it’s kind of cool because I got stuff all over everywhere that has my name on it. So years from now, whenever I’m in the ground, I’ll have something with my name on it.”
A legacy born from passion and thriving because of hard work.
